TOPIC:

A group acquired today to George Charles Armitage of the NGR has raised a question which, if anyone can assist with the answer, I will be grateful for.

Armitage was a Ganger on the NGR as well as a Bridge Guard but it is the case of the former pursuit that I require assistance. His medal roll states that he was "Relaying Free State Line In Armoured Train Mishap." Unfortunately no date of context is provided. My logic tells me that it can't have anything to do with the Chievely incident of 15 November fame so does any erudite reader of this post have any idea what incident or "mishap" it relates to?

Regards

Rory

Rory,

I have no idea whether this is the "mishap" referred to, but its the only armoured train derailment I have so far been able to find that occurred in the Free State.


Manchester Evening News, 20th May 1901

TRAIN DERAILED BY A MINE.

A LANCASHIRE OFFICER KILLED.

The War Office today issued the following despatch from Lord Kitchener: –

Pretoria, 18th May, 1901, 6 p.m.
An armoured train was derailed by a mine south of America Siding. I regret to say Major Heath, 3rd Battalion South Lancashire Regiment, was killed.
[Note – America Siding is about ten miles north of Kroonstad, on the direct line to Johannesburg].




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Thank you Neville. I certainly think that incident could be a contender. My initial thinking is that, being NGR, Armitage would probably not have strayed much further than Harrismith so have been concentrating my efforts in that area of the OFS. It certainly is a poser though.

One only realises how little is written about various aspects of the Anglo Boer War when one encounters this sort of thing.

Regards

Rory

The more I think about it the more convinced I become that what was being referred to on the medal roll was the "line to the Free State" not a line in the Free State. By implication this probably means that Armitage, as a NGR employee, was relaying a part of the line to the Orange Free State IN Natal which, if my assumption is correct, means we should be looking for an Armoured Train mishap in Natal - probably around Ladysmith/Dundee/Van Reenen's Pass.

Could this be the Chievely mishap involving Churchill? See attached truncated version of Cassier's map of the Natal GR system

Any takers?



Regards

Rory